Bury elected mayor plan rejected

The referendum was prompted by a petition being submitted to the council Voters in Bury have rejected plans for the borough to be run by a directly elected mayor. A referendum resulted in 15,425 voting no, and 10,338 voting yes. Turnout was recorded at 18.25%. An 8,000-signature petition calling for the move was handed to the council in January, prompting the referendum. The result means the Conservatives will continue to run the council. Bury is the first council in Greater Manchester to have offered the referendum. An elected mayor would have chosen a cabinet of councillors and have been responsible for the day-to-day running of the council. If the proposal had been voted through, the borough council, with its 51 councillors, would have remained but it would have been led by a directly elected mayor, who could have decided... [read full story]